Toy electric motor



May 27, 1930. c. T. HOFFMAN 1,760,498

TOY ELECTRIC MOTOR Filed Jan. 15, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Z 14 4 E" J J 675 5 15 7 d 1:: I I o L 15 I gwuemto'o May 27, 1930. (3,211 HQFFMAN1,760,498

TOY ELECTRI G MOTOR Filed Jan. 15, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 (9* l Qam. as2/ o o 45 27 22 4 40 z 46 2 Patented May I 27, 1930 UNITED STATES PATENTOFFICE CHARLES T. HOFFMAN, OF WASHINGTON, DISTRICT OFCOLUMBIA,..ASSIGNOB OF ONE- HALF TO EMORY L. GEOFF, OF WASHINGTON,DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA TOY ELECTRIC MOTOR Application filed January 15,1930. Serial No. 421,030.

This invention relates to toys, and more particularly to a toyelectro-magnet c motor. A rimary object of the invent on is to provi e asimple practical and reliable toy 6 utilizing a standard typeelectro-magnet-ic device in such a way as to simplify the constructionand manufacture of a toy of this kind while at the same time providing atoy producing a sound incident to its operat on which simulates theelfect of a gas engine or the like.

Another object of the invention is to provide a novel commutatoroperated by the movement of the fly wheel or equivalent part of the toy.

A further object of the invention is to provide an assembly of partswhich are relatively cheap to manufacture.

With the above and other objects in view which will more readily appearas the nature of the invention is better understood, the same consistsin the novel construction, combination and arrangement of partshereinafter more fully described, illustrated andclaimed.

A preferred and practical embodiment 01 the invention is shown in theaccompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevation.

Figure 2 is a top plan view.

Figure 3 is a side elevation of the other side of the toy shown inFigure 1.

Figure 4 is a bottom plan view of the motor base.

Figure 5 is a top plan view of the battery container.

Figure 6 is an elevation of the inside face of the switch.

Figure 7 is a vertical sectional view of the switch shown in Fig. 6.

Figure 8 is a diagram illustrating the circuits involved in the toy.

Similar reference characters designate cor-' responding parts throughoutthe several figures of the drawing.

In carrying the invention into effect, it is proposed to provide asuitable base 1 preferably of metal, the same carrying in any suitablemanner the frame A including the upstanding metallic walls, supportingmembers or side plates 2. These members may be integral with the base orseparate therefrom so that if desired the toy may be furnished in aknock-down condition and set up by the user,- As shown the side walls2-2 are connected by an end wall 2 which provides a convenient supportfor the base of the switch device S.

A fly wheel 3 having an axle 4 is suitably journaled in the oppositewalls or side plates 22 and is provided at one end with a crank 5connecting with a link 6 which link in turn is connected to the outerend of an actuating lever designated generally as L and which preferablyincludes a resilient or spring portion 7 and the armature portion 8, thelatter being a part of the electro-magnetic device E.

The said electro-magnetic device E is preferably of the standard buzzeror hell ringing type modified to adapt it to the present invention.These modifications include a bearing 9 for the lever L and thegrounding of the lead 10 of one of the electromagnets E to the metallicframe 11 of the electromagnetic device. The said frame 11 is secured bysuitable fastenings 12 to the metallic plate or side wall 2. It will, ofcourse, be understood that the electro-magnets E and E are in series inthe usual manner and the wire 13 from the magnet E is connected to theinsulated binding terminal 14 which is a part of the standardelectro-magnet construction.

At any suitable point there is preferably provided an insulating bindingterminal plate 15. This plate has thereon the binding terminals 16 and17 adapted to be connected to any convenient source of electrical energysuch, for instance, as the batteries 18 or an outside source C. Thebinding terminal 14 of the electro-magnetic device is connected by thewire 19 to the binding terminal 17 which is insulated from the metallicbase 1 and side walls 2 of the frame A.

Referring to the shaft 4 of the fly wheel or its equivalent 3, it willbe observed that the side thereof opposite the crank 5 is provided, withan offset portion or cam 20 which operates in conjunction with a circuitbreaking or commutating lever 21. This lever is pivotally supported asat 22 preferably on a metallic bracket carried by one of the side walls2, and one end thereof is urged toward the offset portion or cam 20 ofthe shaft 4 by a spring 23 while the other end s provided with a contactpoint 24. The tension of the spring 23 is such that the lever 21 is notplaced under material stress when the cam 20 is out of contact therewithas indicated by the clearance shown in Figure 3. However, on the otherhand, the tension of the spring) is suflicient to maintain a uniformpressure etween the contact 24 and a fixed contact 25 carried by the arm26. This arm 26 is mounted on an insulated block 27 carried by one ofthe side plates 2, and is connected b the wires 28 and 28' through theswitch with the battery 18 and the terminal 16.

In connection with the lever 21 it will be observed that the'arm on theside which connects with the spring 23 is longer than the arm betweenthe pivot and the contact 24 so that a maximum pressure is maintainedbetween the contacts 24 and 25 under all con ditions of use. Also, itmay be pointed out that the spring 23 serves as a conductor forgrounding the lever 21 in addition to its mounting on the metallicbracket carried by the frame thereby preventing excessive sparking ofthe commutator points by providing a path of lesser resistance to thecurrent than through the bearings which may be greased freely withoutinterfering with commutator operation. Furthermore, the under surface ofthe lever bearing on the eccentric 20 may be greased to further reducefriction without interfering with any electric action.

In the particular embodiment shown in the drawings, the base 1 havingthe motor surmounting the same, includes the switch S and the bindingterminals 16 and 17 which are adapted for connection with an outsidesource of electrical current as indicated by the dotted lines C in thediagram, Figure 8. Thus the device is so constructed that it may utilizean external source of power such, for example, as from a step-down transformer of the type usually used in connection with toy electric trainsor the like, or it may be so constructed as to provide a self containedtoy. In the latter event, the base 1 is mounted on a box or container Dwhich may contain suitable storage batteries or cells D, D and D Thesedry cells may be of any conventional type readily available on themarket and are preferably held in position between suitable spring clipswhich also serve as contacts or conductors for connecting the cells inseries. As will be observed from Figure 5, the cell D is held betweenthe terminal clip 30 at one end and the spring plate 31 at the otherend, the said spring plate preferably being of metal and serving as aconductor for connecting the negative end of the cell D with thepositive end of ing said cell with. the positive end of the cell D Thenegative end of the latter cell is in turn connected with a springterminal plate 33 having the right angularly disposed strip or extensionportion 34 which connects with a negative terminal contact When usedaccording to the arrangement shown, the metallic base of the motorconstitutes a cover for the box or receptacle D and the same may besecured in position by the screws or equivalent fastenings 36. Also, aswill be observed from Figures 1 and 3, the bottom of the box orcontainer D may be provided with suitable legs of felt, rubber or thelike not only to cushion the base but to assure that the motor seatsevenly on its supporting surface.

The underside of the metallic base 1 of the motor carries therewith theinsulation members 1 which have mounted thereon respectively the springcontact members 29 and 36, the former connecting with the insulated wire28 and the latter connecting with the insulated wire 37 which leads tothe wire 19 which in turn connects the insulated binding post 14 of theelectro-magnet E and the negative binding terminal 17. Since the batteryterminal contacts 30 and 35 are spring contacts, the mere act of placingthe motor base 2 carrying the insulated contacts 29 and 36 therewithonto the box D will cause the completion of the circuit from the battery18 to the motor when the switch S is closed.

Referring more specifically to the switch S which may be convenientlymounted on the end wall 2, it will be observed that the same preferablyincludes an insulated base 40 secured to the wall 2 by the fastenings 41or their equivalent, and having an insulated offset abutment flange 42which acts as a stop to limit the movement of the shiftable switch 1contact member 43. This member is mounted on a shaft 44 journaled in theinsulated block 40 and said shaft has at its outer end a manipulatinghandle 45. For the purpose of maintaining the manipulating handle 45properly in position, the shaft 44 thereof may be provided with aferrule 46 which spaces the handle 45 from the outer face of the block40, the said handle being held against the bushing or ferrule 46 bymeans of the bifurcated tensioning plate 47 carried by the inner face ofthe block 40. The shiftable switch contact member 43 is adapted toengage with the spring ends of the contacts 48 and 49. The contact 48 isconnected by the wire 28 to the fixed contact 25 of the commutator andthe contact 49 is connected by the wire 50 to the positive terminal 16on the outer face of the box and to the wire 48.

When the electrical circuit is closed by moving the shiftable switchelement 43 to the position shown in Figure 6, bridging the terminals 48and 49, current will flow from the battery 18 through terminals 30-29and wire 28* and 28 to the fixed commutator contact 25. As the fixedcommutator contact is held in engagement wth the movable commutatorcontact 24, and since the latter is grounded to the frame A, beingmounted on one of the metallic side walls 2, said frame is included inthe circuit and the currentwill make its way through the groundedterminal 10 of the electro-magnet E thence through the electromagnet Eto the wire 13 leading to the insulated binding terminal 14. From thencecurrent will pass to the wire 37 and through contacts 36 and 35 to thenegative terminal of the battery 18. If the storage batteries are notused and the terminals 16 and 17 are connected to an outside source ofcurrent C the circuit will be the same when the switch S is closed.

As shown in Figure 2 the fly wheel shaft 4 may be provided with a pulleyP. This pulley is preferably keyed or fixed on the shaft in any suitablemanner and may have at the inner side thereof a guard disk G for thepurpose of preventing the belt carried by the pulley from running offand fouling the shaft 4 and the commutator. It will, of course, beunderstood that the pulley P may be placed elsewhere on the shaft or'thefly wheel 3 itself may be used to drive other toys. However, for thepurpose of obtaining greater power it is preferred to have a pulley P orits equivalent.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that the distinctive feature ofthe present invention resides in the provision of a frame including thebase 1 and vertical side wall members 2, the latter serving as a supportor journal for the shaft of the fly wheel and one of said walls havingattached thereto an actuating motor in the form 'of the electromagneticdevice E which is entirely selfcontained in the sense that it includesits own frame 11 and the electro-magnets E and E together with aremovable cover of the type usually used in connection with commercialdevices of this type. The frame 11 may then be secured by the fastenings12, to the side wall 2 thus greatly facilitating the assembly of the toyand rendering the connection of the novel armature lever L with thecrank 5 a simple and easy operation.

Without further description it is thought that the features andadvantages of the invention will be readily apparent to those skilled inthe art, and it will of course be understood that changes in the form,proportion and minor details of construction may be resorted to,with-out departing from the spirit of the invention and scope of theappended claims.

I claim:

- 1. Atoy motor including a supportin frame, a fly wheel having itsshaft supporte 1n the frame, a crank and a cam on opposite ends of saidshaft, an electro-magnet supported on one side of the frame, an armaturemember having a spring lever extension operatively connected with thecrank, and a circuit breaking lever adapted to be operated by the cam.

2. A toy motor including a supporting frame, a fly wheel having itsshaft supported 1n the frame, a crank and a cam on opposite ends of saidshaft, an electro-magmet including a frame secured to one side of saidsupporting frame, an armature member pivotally mounted in the frame ofthe electromagnet and having a spring lever extension operativelyconnected with said crank, a circuit breaking lever mounted on the sideof the supporting frame opposite the frame part which supports theelectro-magnet, and a spring for pulling the lever against the cam.

3. A tov motor including a base, spaced walls carried by the base, a flywheel having a shaft journaled in said spaced walls, a crank and a camon the ends of said shaft projecting beyond said waflls, anelectromagnet including the frame securedto the outer face of one ofsaid walls and including a pivoted armature member having a spring leverextension operatively connected with said crank, a support on the outerface of the wall opposite to the wall carrying the electro-magnet, acircuit breaking lever pivotally mounted in said support, a contactblock carried by the said last mentioned wall and having a contactadapted to be engaged by said circuit breaking lever, and a springengaging said circuit breaking lever to hold the same into contact withsaid cam and to also maintain the contact on the circuit breaking leverand the contact mounted on the block in engagement until separated bythe movement of the cam.

4. A toy motor including a supporting frame, a fly wheel having a shaftjournaled in the frame, a circuit breaker mounted on one side of theframe, means on the shaft for operating the circuit breaker, anelectromagnet including a metallic frame mounted on the supportingframe, said electro-magnet including a bearing member carried by itsframe, an armature member pivoted in said bearing member and having aspring lever extension operatively connected with the fly wheel wherebythe armature is adapted to engage with the ends of the poles of theelectromagnet to produce a noise simulating the explosions of a gasengine.

5. A toy motor including a supporting frame, a fly wheel having a shaftjournaled in the f rame. a circuit breaking lever mounted on the frame,a cam on the shaft of the fly wheel operatively engaging said lever, aspring for forcing said lever against the cam,

a fixed contact arranged to be en aged by the end of said lever oppositethe en engaged by the spring, an electro-magnet carried by the frame, anarmature having a spring lever extension pivotally mounted in theelectro-inagnet and having its end opposite its pivotal mountingoperatively connected With the fly Wheel.

6. A device of the class described comprising a frame including verticalside Walls, a fly Wheel journaled in said side Walls, a preconstructedmotor unit consistin of a frame, electro-magnets having expose polepieces carried by said frame, an armature having a spring extension alsomounted in said last mentioned frame and adapted to engage the exposedpole pieces of the electro-magnets to produce a noise by reason of theflexing of the spring extension of the armature, fastenings for securingthe frame of said motor to one of the side Walls of the first mentionedframe, and an operative connection between the free end of the springextension of the armature and the fly Wheel.

7. A device of the class described including a supporting frame, a flyWheel journaled in said frame, a motor for operating the fly Wheelconsisting of a frame having electromagnets and an armature mountedtherein, said armature having an extension operatively connecting Withthe fly Wheel, an insulated binding post carried by the motor frame andhaving one magnet terminal Wire secured thereto and the other end of themagnet Wire being grounded to the frame, fastenings for securing saidframe to the motor and the supporting frame, and a cover for the motorframe.

' 8. A device of the class described including a motor, a self containedinterior source of electrical energy, binding terminals adapted forconnection to an external source of electrical energy and also connectedwith the interior source of electrical energy, and a switch common toboth the interior source of electrical energy and said bindingterminals.

9. A toy motor including a supporting frame. a fly Wheel having itsshaft supported in the frame, a crank and a cam on said shaft, anelectromagnet including a frame secured to said supporting frame, anarmature member pivotally mounted in the frame of the electro-magnet andhaving an extension operatively connected with said crank, a circuitbreaking lever also mounted on the supporting frame, and a spring forpulling the lever against the cam.

10. A device of the class described comprising a support, a fly Wheeljournaled in said support, an electro-magnetic motor including a framecomprising a body and offset flanges, means for connecting the body ofthe frame to said support, electro-magnets carried by one of the flangesof the frame, an

